RISC. 

American  2&oart>  of  ConiniiOOtoner^  for  foreign  Si^iOsiouO. 


YOUNG  MANHOOD  AND  WOMANHOOD 

IN  MISSIONS. 

BY 

REV.  CHARLES  H.  DANIELS,  D.D.,  HOME  SECRETARY. 


|  A  Paper-  from  the  Prudential  Committee,  presented  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  Board  at 

Grand  Rapids ,  Mich.,  October  5,  i8g8.] 


Boston 

Congregational  House,  14  Beacon  Street 

1898 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2019  with  funding  from 
Columbia  University  Libraries 


https://archive.org/details/youngmanhoodwomaOOdani 


YOUNG  MANHOOD  AND  WOMANHOOD  IN  MISSIONS. 


BY  REV.  CHARLES  H.  DANIELS,  D.D. 

[A  paper  from  the  Prudential  Committee ,  presented  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of  the  American 

Board  at  Grand  Rapids ,  Mich .,  October  g,  i8q8.  ] 

The  place  occupied  by  young  manhood  and  womanhood  in  the  missionary  world 
reveals  not  only  their  peculiar  power  for  service,  but  also  the  responsibilities  and 
opportunities  which  rest  upon  them,  and,  through  them,  upon  the  people  of  God.  It 
was  no  new  discovery  that  led  the  beloved  John  to  exhort,  “  I  write  unto  you,  young 
men,  because  ye  are  strong.”  Youth  is  the  period  of  intense  activity  and  achieve¬ 
ment.  Lord  Beaconsfield  discovered  this  and  said,  “The  history  of  heroes  is  the 
history  of  youth.”  The  matchless  life  of  our  Lord  on  earth  was  a  record  of  youth, 
and  the  loving  heart,  throbbing  for  this  world  down  through  the  centuries,  knows  no 
such  thing  as  advancing  years  or  waning  powers.  Around  this  young  man  were 
gathered  twelve  other  young  men,  each  of  whose  lives  represented  a  type  of  char¬ 
acter  that  was  to  be  influential  in  establishing  the  kingdom  of  God  among  men. 
That  brilliant,  pleasure-loving  city  of  Antioch  needed  the  ministry  of  Paul  and 
Barnabas,  but  the  Holy  Ghost  sent  them  forth  to  the  Gentiles.  Disciplined  to 
obedience  and  bearing  the  strength  and  vigor  of  youth,  they  filled  a  great  place  in  the* 
story  of  missionary  activity.  There  has  not  been  a  time  in  the  history  of  the  world 
when  the  words  of  Jesus  have  had  such  import  as  now  —  “The  field  is  the  world.” 
The  world  is  inviting  our  civilization,  receiving  our  trade,  and  needing  our  religion 
of  life  and  power.  Here  is  a  field  for  the  achievement  of  youth. 

It  has  always  been  a  fascinating  story,  that  of  the  young  man  who,  when  making 
a  plea  for  the  heathen,  was  invited  to  sit  down  and  leave  the  heathen  to  God.  That 
he  did  not  sit  down,  when  age  and  experience  and  high  position  commanded  him  to 
do  so,  is  evidence  of  the  faith  and  courage  of  youth.  We  have,  therefore,  the  life  of 
Carey,  and  the  great  reach  of  his  influence,  to  inspire  the  youth  of  today. 

Young  men  in  the  quiet  of  Williamstown  laid  foundations  upon  which  the  mag¬ 
nificent  superstructure  of  missions  has  been  built  in  America.  Our  Lord  had  inspired 
a  number  of  persons  with  the  same  thoughts  and  desires,  and  this  being  discovered, 
it  led  to  prayer  and  communion  one  with  another  in  order  to  consummate  this  mis¬ 
sionary  movement.  They  consulted  the  wise  leaders  in  the  churches,  distributed 
literature,  talked  about  their  plans  in  homes  and  conferences,  scattered  themselves  in 
other  colleges  in  order  to  make  student  converts  to  the  missionary  spirit. 

A  little  later  the  famous  five,  Hall,  Judson,  Mills,  Newell,  and  Nott,  were  in 
Andover  Seminary,  still  united  in  their  efforts  to  establish  a  mission  among  the 
heathen.  It  is  interesting  to  recall  the  story  of  their  presence  before  the  General 
Association  of  Massachusetts,  at  which  a  paper  was  presented  “soliciting  advice, 
direction,  and  prayers.”  Then  was  instituted  by  that  Association  a  Board  of  Com¬ 
missioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  to  which  the  young  men  were  commended  while 
humbly  waiting  “the  openings  and  guidance  of  Providence  in  respect  to  their  great 
and  excellent  design.” 

The  first  call  to  the  Christian  public  on  the  part  of  the  American  Board  is  a 
testimony  to  the  influence  of  consecrated  youth.  It  ran  thus  :  “  A  new  scene  with 
us  is  now  opening.  It  is  ascertained  that  several  young  men  of  good  reputation  for 
piety  and  talents,  under  sacred  and  deep  impressions,  hold  themselves  devoted  for  life 
to  the  service  of  God  in  the  gospel  of  his  Son  among  the  destitute,  and  are  ready  to 


4 


Yowig  Manhood  and  Womanhood  in  Missions. 

go  into  any  part  of  the  unevangelized  world  where  Providence  shall  open  the  door  for 
their  missionary  labors.”  Associated  with  the  “ready  to  go”  was  also  the  question, 
“Are  we  ready  to  send?” 

The  history  of  the  American  Board  has  once  and  again  been  beautified  through 
its  youth  “ready  to  go.”  The  world-renowned  and  now  venerable  Cyrus  Hamlin 
was  compelled  to  tarry  for  a  season,  until  the  churches’  gifts  could  be  gathered  for 
his  going.  It  was  a  good  year  for  the  churches  when  such  men  as  Schauffler,  Wil¬ 
liams,  and  Tompson  were  added  to  the  lists  of  missionaries.  The  spiritual  awaken¬ 
ings  of  that  time  called  these  men  and  a  score  of  others  to  take  up  this  work,  which 
requires  the  exercise  of  the  most  exalted  virtues  of  self-sacrifice  and  heroism.  We 
are  told  that  the  spirit  of  the  churches  then  would  have  supported  many  more  men 
than  were  ready  to  go.  There  is  a  strange  vacillation  between  the  going  and  the 
sending.  A  few  years  later  and  thirty-five  appointed  missionaries  were  compelled  to 
wait  the  will  of  the  churches.  It  was  an  occasion  of  deep  solicitude.  A  keen  sense 
of  personal  responsibility  for  the  kingdom  of  Christ  pervaded  all  hearts  and  churches. 
This  was  followed  with  a  wide-spread  revival  of  religion  and  thousands  were  added 
to  the  churches.  This  reveals  to  us  as  a  fact  that  the  interweaving  factors  in  foreign 
missions,  the  fields,  the  work  and  workers,  the  friends  and  supporters,  combine  to 
deepen  piety,  induce  revivals,  and  increase  benevolence  in  such  ways  as  to  make  us 
debtors  to  their  gracious  influences. 

We  have  to  mention  another  movement  among  the  youth.  It  is  not  like  and 
yet  it  reminds  us  of  the  gathering  at  Williamstown  which  was  a  beginning  of  mission 
effort.  In  the  summer  of  1886  some  two  hundred  and  fifty  students,  from  about 
ninety  colleges  of  the  land,  were  in  conference  at  Northfield,  Mass.  The  time  was 
passed  in  Bible  study,  but  with  no  thought  of  missions.  One  young  man  qf  mis¬ 
sionary  instincts  had  been  burdened  for  this  conference  that  it  might  be  a  place  of 
world-wide  consecration.  Like  Mills,  he  sought  others,  and,  unburdening  his  heart, 
discovered  other  hearts  like  his.  Twenty-one  gathered  to  pray  for  missions  and  to 
seek  the  mind  of  God  in  his  Word,  and  before  the  conference  was  through  the 
Student  Volunteer  Movement  was  inaugurated,  with  one  hundred  volunteers.  Bap¬ 
tized  with  prayer  and  inspired  with  the  Word  of  God,  the  Movement  has  compelled 
the  glad  attention  of  all  our  Missionary  Boards,  and  it  stands  as  a  challenge  to  the 
faith,  devotion,  and  generosity  of  the  churches.  It  is  a  factor  which  must  be  con¬ 
sidered.  Educated  youth  are  its  leaders,  and  our  students  its  members.  The  higher 
institutions  of  learning  in  the  United  States  and  Canada  are  embraced  in  its  field, 
and  from  these  its  membership  is  taken.  Its  object  is  to  present  the  claims  of 
foreign  missions  to  all  students,  with  a  view  to  increasing  the  force  for  the  world’s 
conquest  and  fostering  an  aggressive  missionary  spirit  among  the  educated  classes  at 
home.  It  is  not  a  missionary  board,  but  acts  in  truest  loyalty  to  every  board.  It 
does  not  send  out  missionaries  nor  decide  upon  their  fitness.  Its  leaders  are  brave 
and  picked  young  men,  trained  to  their  tasks.  Its  educational  system,  under  a  com¬ 
petent  leader,  is  fundamental.  Its  care  to  secure  only  those  for  missionary  service 
who  are  well  equipped  and  of  spiritual  power  is  a  ground  for  gratitude.  These  are 
some  of  the  factors  in  the  Movement,  which  is  no  longer  experimental. 

Into  850  institutions  of  learning  this  movement  has  won  its  way.  The  devotion 
and  convictions  of  college  men  have  been  reached  by  the  missionary  appeal.  In 
these  institutions  are  found  nearly  300  study  classes,  enrolling  perhaps  2,500  students, 
who  are  investigating  sympathetically  the  history  and  achievements  of  Christian  mis¬ 
sions.  This  prepares  them  to  understand  the  significance  of  the  work.  It  does 
more,  and  that  which  is  more  needed,  —  it  raises  up  an  educated  pastorate  at  home. 
In  a  recent  inquiry  from  about  100  theological  seminaries  the  almost  uniform  testi¬ 
mony  was  that  courses  of  study  had  been  introduced  into  the  curriculum  under  the 


Young  Manhood  and  Womanhood  in  Missions. 


5 


inspiration  of  this  movement.  It  is  recalled  that  some  twelve  years  ago  one  of  the 
secretaries  of  this  Board,  speaking  in  a  Maine  conference,  insisted  that  the  question 
was  not  one  of  money  but  of  men.  The  enrollment  of  this  movement  is  now  over 
4,000,  about  one-third  women  and  two-thirds  men.  They  represent  48  denominations. 
Already  1,200  volunteers  have  gone  to  the  field,  and  are  found  in  53  countries  of  the 
world,  each  one  a  letter  of  light.  Because  of  this  movement  over  100  institutions 
support  in  whole  or  in  part  a  missionary,  and  the  contributions  from  our  student  body 
have  grown  from  $5,000  to  $40,000  a  year.  More  than  this,  the  interest  and  intelli¬ 
gence  awakened  in  missions  are  sure  to  lead  not  only  to  more  missionaries,  but  better 
ones.  It  will  be  quality,  not  merely  quantity. 

Recalling  some  experience  in  connection  with  applications  for  missionary  appoint¬ 
ment,  we  are  led  to  speak  of  certain  elements  in  regard  to  missionary  qualifications 
which  should  be  understood  in  the  churches  and  by  our  youth.  To  appoint  a  mis¬ 
sionary  is  not  a  light  thing,  but  is  a  matter  of  deliberation  and  conscience  on  the  part 
of  our  Boards.  There  should  be  equal  deliberation  and  frankness  on  the  part  of 
applicants.  There  must  be  a  well-rounded  manhood,  physical,  mental,  and  spiritual. 
There  must  not  only  be  good  health,  but  resources  of  strength,  nerve,  and  sinew. 
These  are  needed  in  order  to  stand  up  under  the  vicissitudes  of  climate,  exposure 
and  hardships,  and  the  nervous  strain  of  heathenism’s  “dead  lift.”  Tendencies  con¬ 
trolled  at  home  are  sure  to  be  aggravated  abroad.  Besides  this  the  laws  of  health 
should  be  well  understood.  Every  one  should  know  himself  and  his  physical  abili¬ 
ties,  for  an  hour  of  careless  exposure  may  work  disaster  for  a  lifetime. 

The  best  training  of  our  best  educational  institutions,  academic,  collegiate,  and 
professional,  is  precisely  what  is  required.  Special  courses  are  not  often  advisable. 
With  the  heart  consecrated  to  the  missionary  work  all  the  regular  courses  will  take 
on  the  nature  of  heart  experiences,  and  thus  while  regular  in  course  will  become 
special  in  influence.  “Mental  powers  and  attributes  of  the  highest  order,  executive 
ability  and  capacity  for  organizing  and  superintending,  find  ample  scope  on  the  mis¬ 
sion  field.”  This  is  truer  today  than  ever.  As  the  missions  grow  older,  their  institu¬ 
tions  more  advanced  and  the  native  helpers  better  educated,  the  leadership  must  be 
stronger  and  abler.  We  may  at  times  differentiate  in  regard  to  the  fitness  of  men  for 
different  fields,  but  we  protest  against  the  idea  that  an  inferior  man  can  be  sent  to  any 
field,  however  lowly  or  remote.  A  weak  man  could  never  have  taken  the  place  of 
Paton,  Williams,  Coan,  Doane,  Pease,  Livingstone,  Moffatt,  Lindley  or  Tyler,  not  to 
speak  of  men  now  living,  the  equals  of  those  now  dead.  The  same  strength  of 
intellect  is  required  to  formulate  a  language,  give  a  literature,  and  establish  churches 
and  schools,  and  do  it  for  the  ages,  in  darkest  Africa  or  the  remotest  island,  as  is 
required  to  cope  with  the  acute  philosophy  of  India  or  Japan.  Missionary  qualifica¬ 
tions  have  been  the  subject  of  just  criticism  at  the  point  of  practical  experience.  A 
course  should  be  devised  for  competent  training  in  our  schools,  developing,  to  quote 
from  our  Manual  for  Missionary  Candidates,  “good  sense,  sound  judgment  of  men 
and  things,  versatility,  tact,  adaptation  to  men  of  all  classes  and  conditions,  a  cheerful 
and  hopeful  spirit,  ability  to  work  peaceably  with  others,  persistent  energy  in  carry¬ 
ing  out  plans  once  begun.” 

Most  of  all  there  must-be  given  to  this  work  a  calm,  intelligent  consecration  of 
life.  From  our  Manual  we  take  these  added  words  :  “  Controlled  by  a  single-hearted, 
self-sacrificing  devotion  to  Christ  and  his  cause.”  The  Christian  reputation  of  the 
missionary  must  be  above  reproach.  The  taint  of  suspicion  must  not  be  against  his 
name.  A  yearning  of  soul  over  the  miseries  of  this  world,  like  that  which  a  mother 
feels  for  her  child;  a  degree  of  love  which  shall  not  tire  any  more  than  Jesus  tired 
in  his  mission  of  mercy;  a  command  of  all  feelings  so  as  to  bring  them  into  sub¬ 
jection  to  Christ  —  these  are  the  qualities  we  need  in  our  beloved  servants.  The 
missionaries’  power  is  a  living,  self-denying,  toiling  piety. 


( 


6 


Young  Manhood  and  Womanhood  in  Missiofis. 


Never  have  there  been  so  many  worthy  applicants  declined  by  the  Boards 
as  at  this  moment,  when  so  many  are  ready  to  go  to  the  field.  This  is  the  most 
trying  problem  confronting  the  volunteer,  and  also  the  most  serious  hurt  to  the  spirit 
of  missions  in  the  churches.  The  call  for  men  has  given  way  to  the  plea  for 
money.  These  are  the  times  of  divine  opportunity.  God’s  callings  are  his  enablings. 
East  and  West  Africa  and  Zululand  are  asking  for  men.  India  and  Japan  need 
more  men.  China  is  presenting  a  plea  that  appalls  us  with  its  urgency  and  force. 
In  parts  of  Turkey  the  need  is  imperative.  What  can  our  love  for  these  missions 
do  without  money?  I  once  saw  a  mother  with  several  children  to  feed  standing 
before  the  bakery.  She  had  a  basket  on  her  arm,  and  in  her  hand  were  the  pennies 
she  was  counting  with  such  solicitude.  It  was  impossible  to  fill  the  basket  with 
that  which  could  be  purchased  by  those  pennies.  The  American  Board  is  in  a  like 
position;  on  the  one  hand  are  the  youth  ready  for  the  battle  of  faith,  on  the  other 
are  the  hungry,  waiting  multitudes,  and  the  treasury  is  so  empty. 

These  conditions  constitute  an  earnest  appeal  to  the  churches.  The  young 
people  wish  to  know  whether  their  services  will  be  required,  or,  to  put  it  in  a  different 
form,  whether  the  churches  will  send  them  to  the  nations  in  the  darkness  and 
shadow  of  death.  The  inquiries  on  this  subject  are  frequent,  and  it  is  disheartening 
in  the  extreme  when  a  doubtful  answer  is  given.  The  history  of  the  Amerioan  Board 
will  show  that  in  many  instances  the  revenue  has  been  increased  by  the  knowledge 
that  missionary  candidates  were  waiting  to  be  sent  forth.  The  youth  set  apart  to 
the  missionary  service  and  the  wealth  given  to  this  same  purpose  act  and  react  upon 
each  other.  When  the  resources  are  adequate  there  is  a  call  for  more  missionaries, 
and  the  subject  of  personal  duty  is  laid  upon  every  thoughtful  student  for  the 
ministry.  When  the  means  have  been  wanting,  students  have  felt  that  they  could 
not  be  sent  forth  even  if  they  offered  themselves,  and  so  they  have  turned  to  other 
fields.  This  is  true  today  in  no  small  measure.  On  the  other  hand,  when  the 
churches  know  that  the  youth  are  ready  to  go  they  cannot  venture  to  so  withhold 
the  means  as  to  prevent  their  going.  The  very  origin  of  the  Board  is  an  illustration 
of  these  principles.  The  question  before  us  takes  this  form :  “  If  we  are  to  have 
these  alternations  —  now  a  full  treasury  and  no  missionaries  to  be  sent,  and  then  a 
burdensome  debt  and  missionaries  detained  —  how  can  the  Board  go  steadily  for¬ 
ward?”  Waiting  missionaries  should  be  the  effective  appeal  for  filling  the  treasury. 

This  movement  among  the  students  is  coming  to  the  attention  of  the  churches. 
The  Presbyterian  body  in  1896  gave  its  sanction  to  this  movement,  “which  challenges 
Christendom.”  The  celebrated  Lambeth  Conference  of  the  Bishops  of  the  English 
Church  records  its  gratitude  to  God  “that  a  very  large  number  of  students  in  the 
universities  and  colleges  throughout  the  world  have  realized  keenly  the  call  to 
missionary  work.”  The  Congregationalists  in  England  have  expressed  the  hope  that 
that  denomination  “may  have  full  share  in  this  great  and  significant  pnrpose  of 
young  men  and  women  to  win  the  world  to  Christ.”  For  two  successive  years  the 
conferences  of  Foreign  Missionary  Boards  of  the  United  States  and  Canada  have 
carefully  reviewed  the  details  and  purposes  of  this  movement,  and  have  added  their 
hearty  approval  to  this  far-reaching  and  inspiring  venture.  This  movement,  begun 
in  America,  has  reached  beyond  the  seas  to  many  lands,  among  them  Great  Britain, 
Germany,  France,  Scandinavia,  Africa,  China,  India,  and  Japan.  The  students  of 
Christian  lands  have  joined  with  those  of  mission  lands  in  working  out  the  Re¬ 
deemer’s  will.  The  name  of  this  wider  movement  is  The  World’s  Student  Christian 
Federation. 

Young  men  and  women  are  before  God  asking' him  to  send  forth  laborers  into 
the  harvests.  The  churches  of  the  world  must  hear  these  petitions  also.  The  effect 
must  be  startling  when  once  the  idea  reaches  the  hearts  of  God’s  people.  It  will  be 


Young  Manhood  and  Womanhood  in  Missions. 


7 


a  revelation  of  opportunity  and  advantage  from  which  the  church  cannot  turn  away. 
It  will  be  discovered  that  this  work  is,  by  the  spirit  of  Christ,  destined  to  inspire, 
inflame,  and  arouse  all  the  consecrated  powers  of  the  church. 

The  churches  need  to  realize  more  fully  that  we  can  never  stop  sending  forth 
missionaries  without  most  hurtful  influence  upon  the  missions.  To  stop  sending  them 
is  to  check  the  growth  of  missionary  feeling  in  our  institutions  of  learning  at  a  time 
when  the  “sense  of  mission”  is  reaching  powerfully  the  educated  mind.  It  will 
operate  banefully  upon  the  ministry  and  churches. 

The  students  need  to  realize  their  responsibility  and  privilege.  In  the  order  of 
time  the  call  to  go  precedes  the  order  to  send.  It  has  been  so  in  the  past  and  will  be 
so  in  the  future.  There  is  reason  to  feel  that  patience  and  devotion  to  this  call  of 
God  will  be  rewarded  by  open  doors  to  the  unevangelized  nations.  In  this  spirit 
many  young  men  have  thrown  the  responsibility  of  preaching  the  gospel  to  the  nations 
upon  the  churches,  and  they  are  now  awaiting  the  churches’  answer. 

The  pastors  should  be  conscious  of  their  privilege  in  introducing  these  young 
men  and  women  to  their  churches.  To  whom  have  these  young  people  a  right  to  look 
with  such  confidence  for  affectionate  sympathy  and  cordial  support  as  to  the  pastors 
with  whom  they  have  been  commissioned  “to  make  disciples  of  all  nations?”  Who 
can  cherish  the  fellow-feeling  of  a  brother  like  the  man  who  is  appointed  to  train  his 
people  for  the  warfare  of  faith  and  lead  them  on  to  the  spiritual  conquest  of  the 
world  ? 

The  men  of  business  should  feel  this  call  of  the  youth.  They  must  learn  to  live 
for  Christ  in  their  business  of  making  money  as  wholly  as  the  missionary  lives  for  the 
same  master  in  reaching  souls.  They  must  pursue  business  for  Christ,  gain  wealth 
for  Christ,  and  give  it  to  Christ,  just  as  the  missionary  lays  his  life  upon  the  altar  of 
love.  And  these  young  missionaries  cannot  go  to  their  work,  nor  can  the  work  go  on 
until  the  burden  thereof  is  assumed  by  the  men  of  business.  When  we  think  of  the 
incomparable  spiritual  worth  of  money  at  this  time  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  how  much 
good  can  be  done  with  it,  how  many  agencies  set  in  motion  and  sustained  by  it,  then 
the  profession  of  the  business  man,  who  would  give  his  means  and  strength  to  the 
cause  of  Christ,  rises  in  dignity  and'power  until  it  is  a  real  and  living  ministry. 

At  least  twelve  young  men,  not  to  speak  of  women,  made  their  approaches  to  the 
Board  last  year  to  be  sent  to  the  great  field.  Three  are  now  waiting  to  be  sent,  two 
of  them  with  their  wives.  They  appeal  to  the  churches  to  take  their  support,  to  the 
pastors  to  plead  for  their  cause,  which  is  more  than  their  persons,  and  to  the  business 
men  with  their  clear-sighted  vision  of  patent  facts. 

At  least  fifteen  men  are  urgently  called  for  by  our  missions,  either  ordained  or 
medical,  and  in  nearly  every  case  the  men  have  been  promised  when  the,  means  are 
at  hand.  The  missionaries  are  thus  speaking  to  the  churches  loudly,  through  the 
pastors  with  whom  they  should  be  allied  by  the  special  bonds  of  brotherhood,  and 
through  the  men  of  business,  whom  we  beg  to  approach  the  work  of  the  Redeemer’s 
kingdom  with  an  energy  as  yet  untried. 

The  missionary  force  of  the  American  Board  has  ranged  as  follows  during  the 
past  five  years:  557,  571,  572,  555,  543,  and  we  now  report  but  531.  Today  the  en¬ 
thusiasm  of  youth  is  coming  to  the  front  and  asking  for  a  rally  of  the  missionary  spirit 
in  our  churches,  so  that  the  dwindling  ranks  of  our  missionary  forces  may  be  replen¬ 
ished  and  the  strength  and  the  consecration  of  our  churches  magnified  mightily. 


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